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There has been a growing interest among policymakers in the potential role of physical activity (PA) as a strategy to mitigate the challenges associated with an aging population, specifically the potential pressures on the health care system presented by an increasing need and demand for long term management of chronic health conditions. In this dissertation, the relationship between PA and health service utilization among older adults and the role of PA in reducing health services utilization in this population is examined via two studies. Study 1: The purpose of Study 1 was to examine relationships between LTPA and health services utilization in a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling adults aged 50 years and older. Methods: This study involved a secondary analysis of data from the Cycle 3.1 of the Canadian Community Health Survey. The analysis was restricted to individuals aged 50 years and older, resulting in an unweighted sample of 56,652 adults (48%M; 52%F; mean age 63.5±10.2 years), stratified a priori into three age groups (50 – 64 years, 65 – 79 years, 80 years and older). Self-reported use of general physician (GP) services, specialist physician services and hospital services for the 12-month period prior to the survey were the outcomes of interest. The main independent variable of interest was self-reported LTPA for a 3-month period prior to the survey. A comprehensive set of predisposing, enabling, and health need factors associated with health services utilization were included as control variables in all analyses. Separate multiple logistic and negative binomial regression models were used to assess the association between LTPA and each dichotomous and count-based dependent variable, respectively. Bootstrap re-sampling procedures were applied in all regression analyses. Results In the 50-64 year age group, active individuals were 27% less likely to report any contact with a GP (OR=0.73; p<.001) and had 8% fewer GP consultations (IRR=0.92; p<.01) than their inactive counterparts. Among 65 to 79 year olds, active respondents were 18% less likely than their inactive counterparts to have had an overnight hospitalization in the previous 12 months (OR=0.82, p<.05). Across all age groups, higher levels of non-leisure physical activity was associated with lower health services utilization. Study 2: The purpose of Study 2 was to investigate the effects of a randomized community-based PA intervention (50+ in motion) on participants’ health service utilization and healthcare costs over a 5-year period. Methods: 50+ in motion was a randomized clinical trial comparing the effectiveness of a class-based (CB) and home-based (HB) exercise program for older adults with select chronic health conditions (hypertension, dyslipidemia, type 2 diabetes mellitus, osteoarthritis, overweight or obesity). Of the 172 participants randomized, 59 CB and 69 HB participants granted access to their administrative health data. Data pertaining to GP and specialist physician services utilization and costs as well as hospital services utilization and costs were obtained for all consenting participants from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Health for the year prior to enrolment in the 50+ in motion study through to 48-months post-randomization, for a total of 5-years of data. Independent variables including demographic characteristics, physical activity, sedentary behaviour, cardiovascular endurance, functional fitness, body composition, blood pressure, and self-reported physical and mental health status were collected directly from participants prior to randomization and then annually for 4 years. Longitudinal effects of the 50+ in motion intervention on health services utilization and healthcare costs were assessed using the generalized estimating equation (GEE) approach with covariates selected for inclusion based on methods of purposeful selection. Results: There were no significant differences in health services utilization or health care costs between the CB and HB interventions until the final year of the study when the HB group had 60% more GP visits than the CB group and were 89% less likely than the CB group to be frequent users of specialist services. There were no significant differences between the randomization groups in healthcare costs. Measures of functional fitness emphasizing lower body strength, endurance and power were more consistently associated with lower health services utilization than CV endurance, body composition or physical activity. Sedentary behavior was associated with higher hospital costs, independent of physical activity, functional fitness and health status. Overall Conclusion: Taken together, the two studies in this thesis address a significant gap in the Canadian literature and provide novel insights into the relationships between PA, health and health services utilization in older adults. While further research is needed to improve our understanding of the relationships between physical activity and sedentary behaviour, physical fitness, and health services utilization, the findings presented in this thesis suggest reducing sedentary behaviour and improving functional fitness in older adults may be as important as physical activity, if not more so, in terms of potential impact on health services utilization and health care costs. For health care professionals and policymakers at all levels, the findings highlight the advantages of a multi-pronged, interdisciplinary approach to the development of public health initiatives and interventions focused on increasing PA participation and functional fitness among older adults.

This thesis presents a series of studies pertaining to tribological, thermal, kinetic and slurry utilization aspects of chemical mechanical planaraization processes. The purpose of this work is to both develop a better method of characterizing the tribological mechanisms during polishing, as well as propose methods by which slurry utilization efficiency can be increased in order to minimize environmental hazards and operational costs associated with polishing without compromising the desired polish outcomes. The first study was conducted using a modified version of the generic Stribeck curve using real-time shear and down force data collection at 1,000 Hz. This investigation served to provide a better understanding of the tribological and thermal mechanisms associated with polishing copper and tungsten blanket wafers on an industrially relevant soft pad. A multitude of gradual yet continuous changes in sliding velocity and polishing pressure were applied during polishing. Results indicated that polishing on the soft pad produced stable coefficient of friction (COF) values entirely within the "boundary lubrication" regime, while copper polishing on a hard pads produced a tremendous spread of data and resulted in both “boundary lubrication” and "mixed lubrication" regimes. In addition, the average pad surface temperature showed a linear relationship with the product of the COF, sliding velocity, and downward pressure for all copper and tungsten polishes on both soft and hard pads. Another study in this thesis investigated slurry availability and the extent of slurry mixing for three different slurry injection schemes. An ultraviolet enhanced fluorescence technique was employed to qualitatively measure slurry film thicknesses atop the pad surface during polishing. This study investigated standard pad-center point slurry dispensing and a slurry injection system (SIS) that covered only the outer half of the wafer track. Results indicated that the radial position of slurry injection and fluid interactions with the SIS greatly influenced slurry mixing and availability atop the pad. Silicon dioxide removal rates were also found to increase as slurry availability increased. Using a combination of standard pad-center slurry dispensing and a half-wafer track SIS resulted in similar silicon dioxide removal rates as standard pad-center slurry dispensing but at a 40% lower slurry flowrate. The final study in this thesis investigated the effects of ultrapure (UPW) water dilution of a ceria-based slurry on silicon dioxide removal rates. Results showed that pre-mixing the slurry and UPW increased the removal rate with dilution up to a slurry to UPW ratio of 1:7.5 due to the increasing presence of Ce3+ via the reduction of Ce4+ by UPW. Further dilution yielded a plateau in the removal rate trend as additional UPW reduced the coefficient of friction (COF) and the temperature during polishing, causing the benefits of increased ceria-silica binding to be offset by mechanical limitations. Mixing the slurry directly at point-of-use at the dispense nozzle resulted in a removal rate trend that was highly similar to pre-mixing, however, removal rates were higher at every dilution ratio. A novel slurry injection system (SIS) was employed at various rotation angles as measured from the leading edge. The SIS angles produced different retaining ring bow wave thicknesses, which led to varying extents of dilution and, by extension, removal rates. The SIS at -8° produced the highest removal rates of all angles. A third dilution ratio test was performed using point-of-use mixing through the SIS at the optimum angle of -8°, which resulted in a similar removal rate trend as pre-mixing and pad-center dispense point-of use mixing, but with dramatically higher removal rates at each dilution ratio. The ability to attain higher removal rates could potentially allow integrated circuit (IC) manufacturers to either reduce polishing times or reduce slurry consumption, subsequently reducing slurry waste and creating a more environmentally benign semiconductor manufacturing process.

Transgender and gender-nonconforming (TGNC) individuals in the United States experience significant marginalization due to stigma enacted at the structural, interpersonal, and individual levels. As a result, this population has reported increased behavioral and physical health needs, as well as unique barriers to healthcare. Moreover, TGNC individuals have reported greater experiences of childhood abuse compared to cisgender individuals. The cumulative experiences of stigma-related stressors and adverse childhood experiences put this population at risk for the development of mental and physical health problems, increasing need for health services. However, TGNC individuals have reported being denied medical care and postponing seeking care due to fear of discrimination, which may increase complications and severity of illness, and result in increased hospitalizations and healthcare costs. Utilizing the Andersen Behavioral Model of Health Services Use and Theory of Planned Behavior, the current study examined robust associations among stigma-related stressors, adverse childhood experiences, personal and physician-related enabling factors, mental, behavioral, and physical health needs, and healthcare utilization, intention, and delay among an online convenience sample of 109 TGNC adults in the United States. A series of multivariate and mediational analyses were conducted to determine the connections among predisposing factors, enabling resources, needs, health beliefs, and healthcare intention, delay, and behavior. Although predisposing factors were not directly associated with healthcare behavior, they were directly associated with healthcare delay. Moreover, mediation analyses indicated an indirect effect of victimization and adverse childhood events to decreased healthcare utilization and increased delay through mental health needs, internalized stigma, negative personal beliefs, perceived TGNC-inclusivity of healthcare providers, and finally, behavioral intention. Thus, the present study illuminated a possible cascade of detrimental effects that are initiated by stigma-related stress and adverse childhood experiences through enabling resources, needs, and beliefs, that ultimately are associated with healthcare utilization intent, behavior, and delay. These findings highlight the need to address both TGNC individuals’ timely use of care, and the quality of care they receive. It is imperative that future research takes a multi-level approach by creating and testing evidence-based interventions to improve both healthcare providers’ competency, as well as for TGNC individuals’ ability to coping with stressors.

The problem of this study is to determine the administrative practices for securing the optimum use of instructional space in colleges. This necessitates the development of an instrument to evaluate these practices.

Mental illness and psychological distress is associated with higher rates of medical service usage and treatment of these issues results in more appropriate medical utilization rates. Little research has been conducted in an integrated care clinic, wherein health psychologists or behavioral health specialists work together with physicians to provide patient care. The current study examines the effects of brief behavioral and mental health interventions on patient medical utilization in this setting with care delivered by medical residents and doctoral psychology trainees. Access to the health system’s electronic billing records allowed for objective measures of annual healthcare utilization in terms of inpatient, outpatient, and emergency department use. A quasi-control group was constructed using propensity score matching in order to compare patients who had received a primary care psychology intervention to those who had not. Rates of inpatient utilization decreased significantly among treated patients overall as well as among treated patients identified as frequent attenders; there was no change in inpatient utilization among patients in the control group overall nor among frequent attenders in the control group, indicating that there is likely an effect of behavioral and mental health treatment on rates of inpatient visits. Rates of emergency department use and specialty outpatient visits were comparable between treated and control group patients, suggesting the lack of a treatment effect in these areas. Strengths, limitations, possible mechanisms, and implications for future research are discussed.

The involvement of cyanide oxygenase in the metabolism of pyruvate and a-ketoglutarate-cyanohydrin was investigated and shown to occur indirectly by the consumption of free cyanide arising from the cyanohydrins via chemical dissociation. Thus, free cyanide remains the substrate, for which the enzyme displays a remarkably high affinity (Kmapp,4 mM). A model for cyanide utilization is therefore envisioned in which the substrate is initially detoxified by complexation to an appropriate ligand followed by enzymatic oxidation of cyanide arising at sublethal levels via chemical dissociation. Putative cyanide oxygenase in cell extracts consumed both oxygen and NADH in equimolar proportions during cyanide conversion to CO2 and NH3 and existed separately from an unknown heat-stable species responsible for the nonenzymatic cyanide-catalyzed consumption of oxygen. Evidence of cyanide inhibition and nonlinear kinetics between enzyme activity and protein concentration point to a complex mechanism of enzymatic substrate conversion.

Title: Assessing the activity of ice hockey players depending on the size of the ice rink and the number of players in youth categories of ice hockey Objectives: The main objective of the thesis is to compare the number of shots, goalkeeper saves, pass attempts, pass completions, time spent puckhandling, situations 1-1, fouls and goals in minihockey depending on the size of the playing area and the number of players. In order to fulfill the objective of the thesis the scientific question will be answered: What is the best organization of the game and the size of the ice rink based on proportionately the highest total viewed gaming activities? Methods: We analyze the viewed activities based on 40 video recordings of games of players born in 2007. These will be compared taking into consideration the individual game organization and structures of the ice rink; thereafter the statistical significance of individual differences will be determined. Subsequently, the raw scores will be converted into standardized scores, T- points. Based on the values of T-points the most appropriate size of the ice rink and number of players for an effective development of the gaming activities will be determined. Results: Based on an analysis of the minihockey gaming activities depending on the game organization and...